PS3 Movie Night - Hardware Review, Sony Announcement

If you've read my blog in the past, you know I have had my share of criticism at Sony.  I don't have any for the Blu-Ray portion of the PS3, they did an amazing job.

Sony and New Formats

Sony typically puts very good components in the first generation of a new format they are trying to push.  Case in point is my Sony DVP-9000.  The DVD player was released as one of the first "all-in-one" players to push SACD.  I really enjoy music and over the years put together a good sound system.  A high-end journal I subscribed to turned me on to the DVP-9000 to use as a SACD player.  I picked mine up on E-bay for a few hundred dollars.  Sony put some of their best SACD hardware into this player and the SACD playback is within shades of players that cost over $5000.  It is amazing,  and was part of Sony's push for the format.  The consumer clearly won with that player (it was about $1000 new).

Video Quality

I think Sony has done something similar with the PS3.  The Blu-Ray playback is outstanding and Flyboys is a movie you can use to really show off the format with your HDTV.  My set is a Samsung 50" DLP with a max resolution of 720P, so I can only imagine how it would look at 1080P.  Even at my resolution it blew me away.  There is one scene with the pilots about to load into the airplanes where the texture of the jackets was so clear, you could sense the softness of the leather.  It was almost like you were standing there.

The fast moving aerial scenes were rendered flawlessly, with no stutter at all.  The initial takeoff over the French countryside, starting in formation, moving over the water with the music building is a great "show off" scene for the player.

The Blu-Ray playback on the PS3 has been highly praised by many reviewers.  Several have said it is the best player on the market, and sells for less than the stand-alones.  If you read AVS forum  you will hear from several people who bought the unit only for Blu-Ray playback.  They won't be disappointed.

Audio Quality

The audio soundtrack is excellent with a moving orchestral score and of course, a lot of machine gun fire and explosions.  A little bit of everything to push your sound system.

The PS3 playback was crystal clear and spacious.  The bass was deep with floor shaking explosions and the machine gun fire resonated in my chest.  The soundtrack was well produced and the PS3 did not limit it at all.

Another great "demo" product.

PS3 Blu-Ray vs. X-box 360 HD-DVD

To be fair, I can't give a completely accurate video review because the 360 outputs component vs. HDMI for the PS3.  The Samsung is a far better set with HDMI, so the comparison is not equal.  In all honesty, even with my set it's a toss-up.  Both players look amazing with good HD material.  You can't lose with either one in the video realm.  There are a couple of features of the HD-DVD pop-up menu system I like better, but it wouldn't be enough to sway me either way.

The one problem the 360 add-on player has is audio - it stinks.  The PS3 just blows it out of the water in this area.  I have tried several options with the 360 and had no luck.  The audio is not as clear and spacious and it lacks the deep bass.  It sounds muffled.  This problem is only with the HD-DVD player, games are fine.  In fact, you have to crank up the audio when watching a DVD, but the system sounds are still loud, especially the pop-up menu.  MS has acknowledged the problem, but no fix has been delivered.

The audio track on the 360 HD-DVD player is good, but not great like the PS3.

Sony's Living Room Future

There is obviously a move to take over the home entertainment center by both MS and Sony.  Sony is behind, especially in connectivity and downloadable content, but that is changing.  Sony has just announced movie downloads in the future.  Combined with their movie production this will be another "format" war - but really more of a brand war.  We may not see movies out of the Sony house on the X-box anytime soon. 

MS does have a big advantage with Windows.  I'm running the 360 as an extender for a Vista machine and it works seamlessly (review in the near future).  The ability to seamlessly attach to the number one operating system in the world is a big plus.  Sony notoriously doesn't play well with MS or Apple.  Ease of use is a huge issue when making a push to conquer America's living room.

Does the Format War Matter?

In the end this may all be a moot point.  While still in its infancy, the MS download service has made a believer out of me.  The HD downloads are excellent, and even if I have to make my choice a day or afternoon early to enable time for the download, it's still easier and faster than waiting for a DVD to arrive by mail.  In time and with enough storage space I foresee a download "queue" similar to Netflix that allows downloads to occur during the evening or on a flexible schedule (hint, hint Microsoft).

Sony's announcement only makes the future of downloadable content all the more certain. 

The Future

If the whole format war is moot, and downloads are the future, it makes the entire console war strategy interesting.  Sony delayed product for Blu-Ray and created a more expensive entry level with a format which may or may not make it.  But, they put in 60 gig of HD space which is plenty for several downloads.

MS offered the HD-DVD as an add-on and got to market first, but with a hard drive that doesn't really have enough space to hold much for the HD solution that may be the winner.  Supposedly a larger HDD model is coming.

There have been mistakes by both sides, and the next year or so will be very interesting.



Posted by deucedriver @ 3:17 pm EDT | Permalink | 0 Comments

PS3 Blu-Ray Movie Night - Flyboys Pt .1

I just finished watching Flyboys (Blu-Ray) on the PS3 and I really enjoyed the movie.  I'll give a full review in two parts.  First the actual movie and tomorrow the hardware review.

Flyboys the Movie

This flick was roasted in the reviews,so I didn't have high hopes.  But being a flyer, an aviation history buff, looking for some material to watch on the PS3 and a desire to refresh my memory and see a "historical fiction" piece about the Lafayette Escadrille,  I added it to my Netflix queue.

If you aren't familiar, the Lafayette Escadrille was a group of volunteer Americans who flew for the French in WW I before the U.S. entered the war.  Aviation was in its infancy, and this diverse group of people fought and died as a volunteer French squadron.

The history gets a typical hollywood treatment with some excellent flying scenes, the usual personal trials and of course a love interest.  It runs about 2 hours and 20 minutes, and I thought he pacing was good.  The movie does a great job in the flying scenes depicting the very close range dogfights these pilots endured.  There is also an excellent scene that captures the reality of fighting against a zeppelin.

The love story isn't too painful and adds a little suspense to the film.  For some reason almost every movie has to have one.  I was able to endure it better than the love story in Pearl Harbor.

The Must See

If you do rent or purchase the movie, you absolutely must watch the special features, especially the short documentary about the real Lafayette Escadrille.  I learned about them in college (it was a required memory item my freshman year) and the features bring out some great facts that really add to the movie.  They talk about the real volunteers and how they match the characters in the movie and the short about the squadron's lion mascots is interesting.  Yes, they had lions.  It made me feel kind of wimpy since we only had two black cats as our squadron mascots in Korea, and one was fat and diabetic.

If you are an aviation fan and want to learn about a time that is almost forgotten in our lacking history education, rent this movie and watch the special features.

Tomorrow the technical review and some info about the PS3 and Blu-Ray

Posted by deucedriver @ 4:00 am EDT | Permalink | 1 Comments

New X-Box Live Game - Wing Commander

Just read this article on Planet X-box, and I must admit this is the first Live game I've actually been excited to see announced - Wing Commander.  The game was great on the PC, and this version sounds like it will be a lot of fun.  I'm looking forward to some 2old2play battles.

Posted by deucedriver @ 3:49 am EDT | Permalink | 0 Comments

Brothers in Arms - Can't Wait!

I found this interesting article over on Planet X-box.  The game is supposed to be released April 2.

The first Brothers in Arms was one of my favorite games for the X-box.  I wish they would add it to the compatibility list!  The game got me back into console gaming after taking a layoff due to work, family, etc. 

If you read my blog you know I was active duty for a long time and still in the reserves so a historically realistic game like this is right up my alley.  The new multiplayer option should be a blast, especially now that I've found the 2old2play crew. 

Yet another game to add the the want list, which is growing much too fast.  It's hard to imagine what it was like last year with so few prospects.  2007 is turning out to be a great year for gaming. 


Posted by deucedriver @ 12:21 pm EDT | Permalink | 0 Comments

Sony Stinks...

Since I have the 360 and PS3, I guess I can't be called a "fanboy" for either one, but I know it seems like I have been picking on Sony lately.  Well, I've thought about it and my conclusion is - so what.

As a consumer I shouldn't have any mercy on this pathetic introduction.  I think Sony needs to be criticized, and who knows, if enough people do it maybe they will come around.

The latest saga:  Full Auto 2 Demo.  Downloading this has been a 4 hour ordeal.  My Internet connection (cable) is fast, I've never had a problem.  I know there is a lot of traffic on their servers today (since we are all starved for content!), but come on.  Also, you can't do anything else when downloading so the machine is out of commission.  Anyway, a couple hours into the download attempt it stopped and I "lost connection to server".  Time to start again.

The demo finally downloaded and I was very underwhelmed.  To me, a non-textured, flat wall, no matter how fast is goes by, is not exciting.  I should have downloaded the HD trailer of Ghost Rider instead.  I played a few races vs. the AI, then went online to play some Gladiator.  You could say this would be a rental, but then again, why?  There are no gamer points to get, so I would get nothing out of it, except a waste of my time.

MS hasn't been perfect with the online system, and they have had some issues during high load times.  At least they acknowledge it.  You can go to the Major Nelson blog and know someone is there, trying to make the online system the best it can be.  The banners on X-box Live tell of upcoming events and downloads. No such luck in Sonyland, just the same NBA Live 07, Blast Factor, etc. stuff over and over since last year.

"Hello, McFly!"  is anyone home in Sonyland!?!?!?

Posted by deucedriver @ 11:38 pm EDT | Permalink | 3 Comments